Ore separating apparatus



April 1959 E. w. WINDOLPH ORE SEPARATING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Oct. 22. 1956 INVENTOR. Edmund W. Windolph BY WHJTEHEAD, VOGL aLowe ATTORNEYS JMKAZM Fig. 2

E. W. WIN DOLPH ORE SEPARATING APPARATUS April 21, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed' Oct. 22, 1956 mw s R. 0L Y 0 d E 1 m m m m m ww M W Edmun BY WHITEH PER 7 ORE SEPARATIN G APPARATUS Edmund W. Windolph, Denver, Colo. Application October 22, 1956, Serial No. 617,455

7 Claims. (Cl. 209-123) This invention relates to ore sorting and cleaning apparatus and more particularly to such apparatus which is for the manual picking and sorting of ore. The invention will be hereinafter referred to as a manual ore-sorting apparatus.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved manual ore-sorting apparatus which is especially adapted for cleaning and sorting feldspar and like minerals which usually contain quartz and other rock waste whose physical properties are so similar to the ore or mineral that hand picking is the only practical sorting method.

There exist many valuable deposits of feldspar where the mineral is sufiiciently pure and free of iron to be usable in commerce for glass making, ceramics and the like. Such deposits are usually found in or associated with pegmatite dikes which will include masses of quartz and, crystals of hematite, mica and other minerals in the matrix of feldspar crystals forming the dike. Ordinarily it is the quartz which renders the feldspar non-commercial in quality and quartz crystals may be interspersed in irregular manner in the feldspar body while quartz masses will bound a feldspar deposit, all in a manner which often renders it practically impossible to separate quartz and other rock from the commercial mineral. In such a situation, a hand picking of the material to separate the mineral from the quartz and rock is essential, and this operation may become quite expensive where the material is in comparatively small pieces.

It follows that there is a real and definite need for apparatus which will facilitate the movement of ore to position it for hand picking and sorting. With such in view, the present invention was conceived and developed, and comprises, in essence, an improved arrangement of receiving hoppers adapted to receive charges of ore as from dump trucks, move the ore to an advantageous position for hand picking, receive the picked ore for discharge into trucks and the like and discharge waste rock to dump piles.

It follows that other objects of the invention are to provide a novel and improved manual ore-sorting apparatus which: (a) is especially adapted for the cleaning and sorting of feldspar and like minerals from quartz and waste rock; (12) is adapted to receive the ore in batches and permit a free flow of ore to the operators in a manner which permits them to handle the material at any desired speed; (c) facilitates the handling of material in comparatively effortless labor-saving, relatively fast movements; (d) permits the material to be cleaned of dust and freed of small particles and pebbles as an incident to the flow and movement to the pickers; (e) may be operated by any individual or by a crew of pickers; and (f) is a neat, simply-constructed, economical, rugged and durable apparatus.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, all of which more fully hereinafter appear, my invention comprises certain novel and improved constructions, combinations and arrangements of parts and elements as here- States Patent 2,883,050 Patented Apr. 21, 1959 inafter described, and as defined in the appended claims and illustrated, in preferred embodiment, in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a unit of my improved manual ore-sorting apparatus which is adapted for accommodating three picking operators.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the unit as viewed from the indicated line 22 at Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional detail as viewed substantially from the indicated line 33 at Fig. 1 but on an enlarged scale.

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional elevational detail as viewed from the indicated line 4-4 at Fig. 1 but on a somewhat enlarged scale.

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional elevational detail as viewed from the indicated line 5-5 at Fig. 1 but on a somewhat enlarged scale.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary isometric detail of portions illustrated at Fig. 3 as would be viewed as substantially from the indicated arrow 6 at Fig. 3.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary sectional detail as viewed from the indicated line 7-7 at Fig. 3.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, my improved manual ore-sorting apparatus includes a receiving hopper 10, a sorting table 11 at the discharge end of the hopper and a storage bin 12 below the table. The receiving hopper 10 and storage bin 12 are arranged as inclined units in order to permit an easy gravitational flow of material through them, from the hopper 10 to the table 11, from the table 11 to the bin 12 and from the bin 12 to a truck or shipping car.

Because of the necessary elevational ditferences of the units, this apparatus may be supported upon trestles or may be advantageously located on a hillside where it is possible to build a suitable rampway 13 leading to the receiving hopper so that a truck may move to the hopper and dump a load therein. A similar driveway 14 will be located below the storage pin at the other end of the ap paratus to permit a truck or car to be moved underneath the bin to receive the sorted ore therefrom.

The hopper 10 and bin 12 are formed of suitable planking and timbering in a conventional manner and each is built upon a Wooden or steel framework and will be supported upon structural posts 15 of such framework elements which extend below the hopper as supporting legs. These posts 15 rest upon suitable foundation caps 16. A hackwall 17 may be formed against the posts 15 at the edge of the receiving hopper alongside the end of the rampway 13 to form an earth supporting bulwark.

The receiving hopper 10 is a rectangular box-like unit whose floor 18 slopes downwardly between sidewalls 19 from an upper endwall 20 adjacent the ramp 13 and to an opposite wall 21 at the center of the apparatus. The slope is sufiicient to permit material dumped into the hopper to freely move to the lower end of the floor at the wall 21. A slot-like discharge trough 22 is located at the base of the unit at this lower end of the floor 18 and underneath the lower edge of the center wall 21, the base of the slot being level and defining a portion of the sorting table 11, as hereinafter further described.

A rack of spaced, parallel bars form a grizzly 23 which covers the upper end and central portion of the hopper 10, and the bars forming this grizzly slope downwardly the edge of the bafile plate at a level sufiiciently below the upper edge of the baflie plate to permit an operator standing upon the walkway to lift ore pieces and rocks firor'n the grizzly without unnecessary stooping. Ore receiving and waste chutes are located alongside this walkway opposite the baffle plate and against the center wall 21 and an operator may transfer the material from the grizzly into the proper chute.

The ore receiving chute 26 is located at the center of the apparatus and is formed with a rectangular mouth 27 of suflicient transverse width to span the central quarter portions of the hopper and the plates defining the floor of this month converge inwardly from quarter-point crown edges 28 to the chute 26 at the center of apparatus. The chute itself extends downwardly through the floor of the hopper and turns into the storage bin 12.

A waste chute 29 is located at each side of the ore chute, and the mouth 3% of each waste chute is of sufiicient transverse width to span the outer quarter portion of the hopper. The floor of this chute mouth converges at an inclination downwardly from a quarter-point crown edge 28 to the side wall T9 of the hopper wherethrough the chute 29 itself extends for discharge of waste material as to a pile outside the apparatus.

Ore pieces and rock small enough to fall through the grizzly slide to the bottom of the hopper to the discharge trough 22. This trough extends transversely across the base of the floor 18 as an aligned series of openings separated by vertical structural posts 31 which rigidify the center wall 21 of the hopper. These posts 31 are spaced on a module which corresponds with the spacing of a suitable arm reach of an operator at the table, such, for example, spacing on a 24-inch centers and thereby providing a 48-inch table space for an operator with a single post at the center of each operator table-portion. The operator can easily pull ore and rocks from either opening onto the table proper for sorting.

The trough section itself may be an opening directly below the wall 21 or may be formed with a suitable lintel cap 32 between each post 31. It is contemplated that the ore pieces and rock will accumulate at the trough and extend a short distance onto the table portion. However, in many instances where the ore and rock material is wet or where it is especially sharp-edged, it will pack and jam back of the opening and require movement or agitation to break the jam and permit free flow of material. To accomplish such movement, a transverse shaft 33 is rotatably mounted on each side of the ore receiving chute 26 immediately above the trough 22 inside the hopper with one end being supported in a bearing 34 at the chute and with the other end extending through the sidewall 19 and terminating at a hand wheel 35 outside the hopper. Intermediate points of the shaft are supported by bracket-like bearings 36 at the posts 31 and the portions spanning the trough openings are keyed, a preferred construction being to provide two diametrically opposing keys 37 with one key extending from the shaft a further distance than the other to disrupt the material in an irregular manner as the shaft is rotated as by turning the wheel 35.

The table 11 extends transversely across the apparatus and is of sufiicient width as to permit an operator to easily reach across it to gather material from the trough 22 and pull it towards him. This table is illustrated as being level but it may be inclined slightly towards the operator to provide a component of movement towards the operator to minimize the effort he must put forth in pulling rocks towards him. However, such slope will not be sufiicient to cause the material to actually flow or roll across the table. This table is mounted above the storage bin 12 a sutficient height for permitting an operator to work with comfort as upon a deck 38 covering the bin 12 and upon stools 39' suitably upstanding from the deck at convenient positions facing the center of each operator-table portion or section, three such sections being illustrated in the unitshown in the drawing.

The table itself is divided into two longitudinal slotted pockets, each of which lies transversely across the apparatus substantially the length of the table, and it is contemplated that material will drop from the table surface into these pockets for ultimate disposal. The pocket 40 adjacent the trough is for waste rock and is closed from the storage bin. It is formed with opposing sloping bottoms 41 which lead to chutes 42 at each side of the apparatus. The top of this waste pocket 40 is covered with a screen 43 or other reticulated sheet at each operators section and all material pulled across the table by an operator will be cleaned of dust and small pebbles which will drop through the screen and into the trough. An opening 44 is formed at the top of the waste pocket 40 between each operators section at the structural posts 31, and a curved shield 45 is set against each post at the opening 44 to prevent material moving onto the table from falling into the opening. It follows that rocks and waste materials which are pulled upon the table and over the screen 43 may be picked and thrown into the openings 44 for ultimate disposal.

The second pocket 46 through which spar or other suitable mineral is deposited extends along the outer edge of the table next to the operators positions and this pocket drops directly into the storage bin 12. As material is pulled onto the screen and after dust and pebbles are sifted therethrough and waste rock thrown into the openings 44, the sorted spar is pulled into the spar pocket 46 and dropped into the storage bin 12 for subsequent disposal.

The storage bin 12 is constructed similar to the hopper 10 and includes a sloping floor 47 between sidewalls 48 which commences at an endwall 49 at the center of the apparatus and extends downwardly to terminate at an opposite endwall 50. A chute gate 51 is mounted in this endwall 50 and is operated and controlled as by a rope 52. Directive wing-walls 53 are located at the sidewalls 48 at the lower portion of the floor 47 so that all material will move to the chute gate opening for discharge and loading into a truck.

While I have now described my invention in detail, it is obvious that others skilled in the art can devise and build alternate and equivalent constructions which are within the spirit and scope of my invention; hence, I desire that my protection be limited, not by the constructions illustrated and described but only by the proper scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for manual ore sorting and picking, comprising a hopper adapted to receive charges of unsorted ore, a horizontally disposed trough at the base of the hopper wherein the unsorted ore moves, a sorting table at the trough exit whereon unsorted ore is adapted to be pulled, two downwardly directed passageways through the table directed to different locations below the table, a first passageway extending alongside the table adjacent to the trough and the second passageway extending alongside the first said passageway near the outer edge of the table, and screen means covering the first said passageway whereby to permit movement of material across the table, over said screen means and towards the second said passageway and thereby permit dirt and pebbles to drop through the screen means into the first said passageway.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1, including openings into the first said passageway alongside the screen means wherein waste rock may be thrown as the ore is being sorted during its movement across said screen means and to said second passageway.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 1, including openings into the first said passageway alongside said screen means wherein waste rock may be thrown as ore is being sorted during its movement across the screen means and to said second passageway and shields between said openings and the trough adapted to prevent direct movement of material from the trough and into said openings.

4. The apparatus defined in claim 1, including separating means above the hopper adapted to prevent the movement of oversize material into the hopper.

5. The apparatus defined in claim 1, including a grizzly above the hopper adapted to limit the size of material entering the hopper, a bafiie at one end of the grizzly with said grizzly sloping whereby movement of material retained on the baflie moves against the baflle, and ore and waste chutes alongside said bafiie wherein material retained on the grizzly may be selectively deposited.

6. An ore sorting table adapted to permit hand sorting of ore placed thereon and including, in combination, means for supplying ore along one edge of the table, downwardly directed passageways through the table directed to difierent locations below the table, a first passageway extending alongside the edge of the table adjacent said ore supplying means and a second passageway extending alongside the opposite edge of the table substantially parallel with the first said passageway, and screen means covering the first said passageway to permit movement of ore from said supplying means across the screen means and to said second passageway.

7. The table defined in claim 6, including openings into the first said passageway at the edges of said screen means to receive sorted waste material on said screen means and shields between said openings and the ore sup-.

plying means whereby to prevent accidental movement of ore into said openings.

References Cited in the file of this patent 

